Driveline's Kyle Boddy Interested In Major League Role

In a blog post he unveiled on Sunday, June 23, Boddy announced that he would be open to interviewing for pitching coordinator or pitching director roles for major league teams. It seems likely that Boddy will find a potential fit—in the day since he posted the blog he said he’s already heard from seven different MLB organizations.

Last offseason, Driveline Baseball has a significant exodus of top instructors who left for jobs in pro ball, or in the case of Phillies hitting coordinator Jason Ochart, took a new job in pro ball while remaining with Driveline as well. At the time, Boddy said that the next six months would be the most important in Driveline’s history, as either the facility would develop the systems to properly replace the talent drain or it would suffer a setback.

Six months later, Driveline Baseball has developed a certification system that will allow coaches to go through training to be “Driveline certified.” While the system is now a public-facing one, it was first developed to ensure that the facility could consistently train instructors internally. The program is now at a point where Boddy is willing to consider taking on a new, outside role.

“What has changed is I think Driveline Baseball is in a good stable spot,” Boddy said. “We have 52 people working at Driveline. It’s in a good spot and well organized. I can take a step back and start working on my professional aspirations.”

Boddy said he publicly announced his desire to work for a pro team because he wanted to make clear what he was and wasn’t looking for. Boddy said he’s not looking to be a major league pitching coach. He’s interested in working as a pitching coordinator or director of pitching or a special assistant. And if the right role arrived, there are situations where he could see himself becoming an assistant pitching coordinator if was working with the right coordinator.

“I need to be public. It will be twisted if I don’t plant my flag (on what I want),” Boddy said. “It’s going to get around. It’s not an ego thing. I know some will see it that way. I’m not blind to that. People inside the game will say it’s an ego thing. That’s how rumors gets started if you don’t address it. I want to address it straight up. I don’t care what the title is. I’m not caught up in the title. Titles are often given to block interviews with other teams. I’m worried about what affect I can have.”

Boddy said that he will not leave Driveline—the cost of buying out Boddy’s shares of Driveline would likely make that cost prohibitive anyway. A few years ago, that would have likely been a show stopper. But nowadays, teams seem more willing to hire consultants or other part-time employees who continue to have outside roles as well.

“I’m not leaving Driveline. I don’t think it’s the right time for me to do that. It probably doesn’t make financial sense for anyone to do that. It would be being able to contribute to the professional team. Teams are, now in 2019, more open to this type of role,” Boddy said.

Teams have hired a number of Driveline coaches in recent years because the facility has been at the leading edge of player development research and development in recent years. Driveline was among the first facilities in the country to use the high-speed cameras that are now a key part of many teams’ pitch development. It has also developed training methods that are used by many teams.

Boddy said he’d like to use his ability to develop systems for a team, while developing his skills as well.

“I have so much learning to do in this game,” Boddy said.

Boddy and his staff have made an impact on the game, but there are some limits to what can be done from the outside of the game.

“You can’t win a World Series from the outside,” Boddy said. “I turned down the Astros in 2014. I still think about it. That’s how I know my calling is in pro baseball.”